Institutional Obligations and Compliance

Effective Communication and Planning With Parents

Today’s student is accustomed to increased family involvement and interaction. These young adults often depend on their families for advice, guidance, and financial support throughout their university experiences and beyond. As a result, international education professionals have had to modify their

Amendments to 8 CFR 214.2(h) Effective December 7, 2020

On January 15, 2021, DHS/USCIS released an advance copy of a final rule titled Strengthening the H-1B Nonimmigrant Visa Classification Program, which was the Trump administration's response to a federal court having set aside the October 8, 2020 interim final rule of the same title (See court's

Recent Employment-Based Changes and Proposals

The final quarter of 2020 and the first quarter of 2021 saw a number of rule making initiatives by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and Department of Labor (DOL), related to the H-1B specialty occupation category and to a certain extent the PERM labor certification process. This page

ICE OPT Enforcement Actions

"U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) announced Wednesday preliminary results from Operation OPTical Illusion, a law enforcement operation targeting nonimmigrant students who fraudulently used the Optional Practical Training (OPT) program to remain in the United States... The operation

USCIS Policy Memo Rescinds Prior Memos on Third-Party Placements, Contracts and Itineraries

In a June 17, 2020 policy memorandum ( USCIS PM-602-0114), USCIS rescinded the following policy memoranda and issued updated policy guidance in their place: Determining Employer-Employee Relationship for Adjudication of H-1B Petitions, Including Third-Party Site Placements (Reference AFM Chapter 31

Essential Federal Regulations for Education Abroad

As a new Education Abroad professional, understanding the basic federal regulations that govern privacy, discrimination, and mandatory reporting is an important part of your job. In this NAFSA e-Learning Express course, you will learn how five different U.S. federal regulations affect study abroad

Questions for Guiding a Holistic Response

In responding to broadening concerns about the coronavirus (COVID-19), institutions must be cognizant of holistic issues affecting international education, considering not only programmatic and immigration questions, but accreditation, contractual obligations, technical and human resources, and

Pre-Registration Requirement for Cap-Subject H-1B Petitioners

On January 31, 2019, DHS published a final rule governing petitions filed on behalf of H-1B beneficiaries who may be counted toward the 65,000 H-1B cap (regular cap) or the 20,000 beneficiaries with advanced degrees from U.S. institutions of higher education who are eligible for an exemption from

Pre-Submitted Questions and Answers by SEVP for Fall 2019 NAFSA Regional Conferences

SEVP written responses to pre-submitted questions from NAFSA, for the Fall 2019 NAFSA Regional Conferences.

SEVP Policy Guidance: Practical Training-Determining a Direct Relationship Between Employment and a Student's Major Area of Study

On September 27, 2019, the Student and Exchange Visitor Program issued policy guidance on the obligations of schools and students to document that there is a direct relationship between the student's major field of study and the work the student does on pre-completion OPT, standard post-completion